Page 4 - AsiaElec Week 18 2022

AsiaElec COMMENTARY AsiaElec

Will India become

too hot to live in?

INDIA LARGE parts of India risk becoming uninhab- energy.
itable in future if current heat waves persist,
threatening migration and climate crises that Temperature crisis
could send shock waves round the world and Record-high temperatures reaching 50°C, and
displace 1.3bn people. up to 60°C in some areas, have not just broken
Temperatures in the 50s over the last week in 100-year-old weather records, but have also
India and Pakistan, with peaks of up to 65°C, damaged crops and strained the power grid.
have broken records, pushing up demand for Temperatures in Jaipur and Ahmedabad
electricity and air conditioning, causing water reached 47°C, while the hottest temperatures
shortages in agriculture and threatening future recorded are south-east and south-west of
food supply constraints. Ahmedabad with maximum land surface tem-
Coal supply problems and power plant break- peratures of around 65°C, the European Space
downs have caused blackouts as the country’s Agency said.
grid fails to meet demand. Up to 36,735 MW of coal and gas generating
Such an extreme climate event highlights how capacity was taken offline because of equipment
developing countries such as India are exposed breakdowns and a lack of fuel, the Central Elec-
to the effects of climate change, including high tricity Authority said. Neighbouring Pakistan
temperatures, drought and high migration also had to take 8,500 MW offline.
levels. Air conditioning is also pushing up power
Adding in the current energy crisis caused demand, causing domestic coal stockpiles to be
by volatile gas prices and the Russian invasion depleted. The Hubco, Sahiwal and Port Qasim
of Ukraine, India’s current heatwave serves as a also closed, as supplies of imported coal have
warning of the need to invest far more in climate fallen.
adaption and mitigation in major CO2 produc- Temperature is the key metric of global
ing countries, such as India itself and China, to warming and the climate crisis in general. The
rapidly cut their emissions and invest in cleaner IPCC’s scientific consensus is that temperature

P4 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 18 04•May•2022